Woman&#39;s reversible and adjustable house-dress.



W. G. P. BALDWIN.

WOMANS REVERSIBLE AND ADJUSTABLE HOUSE DRESS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.13, 1913.

1, 1 1 2,248,. Patented Se t 29, 1914.

2 BHEETS$HEET 1.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR,

I QPEWUQ A TTORNEK w. 0. P. BALDWIN.

WOMANS REVERSIBLE AND ADJUSTABLE HOUSE DRESS. APPLICATION FILED 33.13, 1913.

1,1 12,248. Patented Sept. 29, 1914;

WITNESSES: INVENTOR,

774 WiW y W CPBZZJWUM ATTORNEY.

with weis't and iomrnn STATES- PAIENT': orrIoE.

li ill fiddo Specification of Letters Potent,

n'onironn; nnssncnns'n'rrs.

n mos'rnere no'esnnnnss racem s dept. so, 1914,

Application filed February 13, 1913. Serial Ho. recess,

To all whom it may-concern:

Be it brown that 1, WILLIAM C. P., BALD- rvrrua citizen of the United States of Americe, and resident of Holyoke,- in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, hove invent/ed certain new and useful Improvements in Womens Reversible and Adjustsble llouserDresses, of which the followis e lull, clesr and exact description.

, This invention relates to a womens house dress which is made as s one-piece garment skirt forming -portions, either end of each of; which portions is adopted to'lep over the other end thereof to extend across the tront'andaround to the sides of the garment for reversibility, end so that when oneof the front portions shell hove become soiledthe other one may be brought outermost to present a freshand clean appearancef-such garment havslit openings at the sides of its waist line portion with fastening means comprising s band or: the like having connections with the garment lrontlportion and adapted to e passed throughthe side slit and to have an encircling relation and confinement st the waist line portion.

The objects of the invention are to provide e garment of the above description which shall be of comparatively simple and inexpensive charucter,' susceptible of adjustment whereby it may be made to fit persons having varying waist measurements and also adapted tor having the waist line at which the securing band or belt is provided higher orlower as required. The garment also is provided with means for acquiring different effects at the back as may be suited to the taste of the wearer.

The invention is described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and isset forth in the claims. i

In the drawings :--Figure 1 is an elevetion showing the one-piece garment as in spread out condition; exposing the inner side thereof. Fig; Qis a front View of the dress as Worn. Figs, 3, 4 and 5 are rear elevations of the dress to show the difl'erent efiects at the bash, vwhich may be imparted thereto. Fig. 6 is a cross sectional view through the belt or Waist band taken on line 66, Fig. 1. Figs. 7 and 8 are cross sectional views ofthe garment taken at the waist line and showing the changes in the relations of the ports necessary to procure the sheets representedin Figs. 3, 4 and 5 respectively.

- Although the garment is referred to as a one-piece dress, it, of course, may be made of severel sections of fabric united by seams as indiceted in l? in The dress comprises and skirt portions o a which are continuous one with another and either end of each or which is adapted to overlap the. other end thereof and to extend across the front and around the sides of the garment-theback portion at being continuous'trom the neck band to the lower hem of. the shirt, The dress has vertical slit openings ff et its sides edjscent or slightly shove its weietline portions, and it has has toning noeens such es buttons and buttonholes tgy'fi along difierent portions of the lengths of said openingstor closing such openings as to portions of their lengths, The reversible end overlapping trout portions a have utwtheir edge portions at the waist line correlated fastenings such as glove snaps comprising; mole and female members 10 and 12 whereby the relatively outermost one of such portions a may have its edge portion attached to the side of the dress, that is, where each front portion is extended-around to about under the arm scye, and is continued by what may be regarded as the dress back. As shown, the female members 12 are provided externally at the dress sides end the male fasteningsor studs 10 internally at the edge portions of the reversible-fronts,- Opposite each male iustening 10, that is, on thevouter side of each front forming portion a, is another fastoning member 13 to receive detachableconnection therewith of one end of a belt form'- ing" band it. Each such fastening member 13 may be a mole member of a glove fastening, the cooperative femule member 14- of such fastening device being provided at the inner side of the belt it near its end. The

belt it comprises an elestic portion k and a non-elastic portion 71?, such non-elastic portion being of a length sufiicient to entirely encircle the dress at the Waist-line. The non-elastic portion h is tubular for a considerable portion of its length, with the space therein opening to its end at which the elastic portion k is connected, so the one portion may telescope into the other for lengthening and shortening: the belt. The elastic portion it has a series of holes 15 along its length, and the non-elastic portion [L8 has a button-hole 16 through its outer layer of fabric near its inner end, and also a button-hole 17 at its outer end. A button, stud or other fastening member 18 secured, for example to the inner layer of the fabric of the tubular portion 713', serves as a fastening for securing the portions h and h together and such fastening member 18 protruding through the button hole 16 performs the double duty of serving in cooperation with the button hole 17 in the outer end of the belt to confine such belt in its encirclement around the dress. As shown in the cross sectional views in which the per tions and relations of the parts are exaggerated and distorted for increased clearness of illustration, the elastic portion 7L2 of the belt is supported by the snap catch engagement of the female fastening member 14: with the stud 10 which inwardly projects from the edge portion of the innermost front portion at, here shown at the left of the views; the said portion 71 thence extends through the left hand slit opening f and is continued entirely around the dress at the waist line and slightly overlaps on itself. The button or stud 1'8 engaging through the button hole 17 confines the outer or free end of the belt and maintains it closely about the person, lending a neat appearance to the outfit. The overlapping and confinement of the said free or outer end of the belt to a portion of itself, conceals the elastic portion b which letter from its nature is of a more unfinished appearance than that of the nonelastic and entirely encircling portion k Supposing the relatively innermost front portion is wanted outermost to overlap and conceal the already worn or soiled outermost front portion, the desired reversal is most easily and quickly accomplished. The free end of the belt is uniastened and theinner end of its elastic portion is detached from what is shown as the left hand edge portion of the inner dress front and transferred to connection with the inwardly protruding stud 10 of the other dress front, the belt being passed through the right hand slit opening f, carried to encircle the waist, overlapped on itself and secured by the but ten 18 carried by itself.

Internally of the back portion of the dress at the waist line are a plurality of fastening members 19 such as male members of glove snaps, buttons or studs, here three being shown, one at the middle and the other two spaced laterally therefrom.

' j represent a plurality of tapes vertically arranged, secured to the dress back at their upper and lower ends and forming stay loops.

m represents an elastic band,shown displaced in Fig. l, the same having a pinrality of fastening devices for cooperation with the aforementioned fastening members 19, such, for instance, as buttonholes 20 or female members of glove snaps. Such buttonholes or snap members 20 are arranged spaced but closer together than are the fastening members 19. By dilferent dispositions of the fabric comprised at the back of the dress and also of the elastic back strip or band m, diil'erent efiects as respectively represented in Figs. 3 and 7, and 8, and 5 and 9, may be acquired,--the first mentioned one being that of a broad external plait or panel, the second an internal or partially concealed plait, and the third that of a series of vertical gatherings. In some of the instances the elastic band will have different buttonholes or fastenings thereof engaged with the studs 19 from what will be the case in other of the instances, and in some of the examples the elastic band has only its end portions engaged within and through the tape loop while otherwise it may be throughout its entire length engaged in and through all of such loops, as will be apparent from the cross sectional views in Sheet oi the drawings.

The dress is adjustable as to girth or dimension of its waist line by reason of the last described-provisions and the encircling belt h is also adjustable by reason of the elastic portion being telescopic in the encircling portion and susceptible of being fastened by means of its buttonhole engagement with the button or stud 18, whereby the belt as a whole is distended or contracted.

Although the reversible front portionsart have been referred to as continuous and inclusive of the waist-front and skirt-front forming portions and are to all intents and purposes so continuous while the garment is being worn, I have shown in Fig. 1 that at the waist line such dress fronts are severed by horizontal slashes extending from their A edges to points at the garment sides about under the arm scyes. lfhe portions indicated by 0 and t, and separable as mentioned on substantial horizontal lines, are of such vertical dimensions that the lower extremities of the waist portions are overlapped by the upper extremities of the shirt portions; and means are provided for securing these parts together while having any degree of overlapping adjustment, such means in the present instance consisting of a button 22 at the lowerouter corner or" the waist section and a series of vertically arranged button holes 23 at the upper outer corner of the skirt-front forming button. By having each portion 22 engaged through either of the several buttonholes 23, the skirt may be raised or lowered for a modification of the waist-line of the garment and in conjunction with such adjustment, the slit openings 1 may have relatively opened and closed portions higher or lower as the case may require llt being entirely a matter of preference as to what particular form of fastenings may be employed at the various points or places in the garment forming the subject matter of this invention, it is to be understood to be immaterial whether I employ glove snaptastenings, buttons and buttonholes, button holes and studs, or in some cases hooks and eyes, as any one of these species of fastenings is the equivalent of another; and I may, moreover, employ one of the mentioned kinds of fastemngs in some places and other of the kinds of fastenings in other places in the garment.

I claim- 1. A dress comprising continuous waist and skirt portions and formed at its waist line with slits, either end of each of which portions is adapted to be lapped over the other end thereof and to extend across the front and around the adjacent side of the wearer for reversibility; in combination with correlated duplicated means located adjacent the Waist line for fastening the relatively outermost of such portions in overlapped position; a belt comprising telescoped elastic and inelastic portions adapted to be detach-ably secured at one end to the edge of the relatively innermost portion, inserted through the adjacent slit and passed entirely around the dress at the waist line, the other end of said belt being adapted to be overlapped and secured upon itself; and means for retaining the said belt portions in adjusted position relatively to each other.

2. A garment of the character specified having reversibly overlapping front portions and a belt adapted tobe detachably connected at one end to one of such portions and to be passed completely around the till Waist line of the arment and overla ed in P and secured upon itself at its other end, said belt comprising telescopically arranged elastic and inelastic portions having correlated means for retention thereof in adjusted position relatively to each other,

3. A garment of the character specified having over-lapping front portions and a belt adapted to be detachably connected at one end to one of such portions'and to he passed completely around the waist line of the garment and over-lapped and secured upon itself at its other end, said belt comprising an elastic portion and a tubular inelastic portion adapted to receive said elastic portion and of suflicient length to completely encircle the garment at the waist line, said belt portions being provided with correlated means for retaining them in adjusted position relatively to each other.

4. A dress comprising waist and skirt front portions adapted either to adjustably overlap the other and to extend across the front and around the sides of the dress, said overlapping front portions being separated at the waist line and of such vertical dimensions that the lower extremities of the waist portions may be" lapped across the upper extremities of the skirt portions, and means for securing said portions in such ad justed overlapping position.

5. A womans dress having reversible fronts and means for confining them in either of thei overlapping relations, and said garment having at its back portion at the waist line a detachable elastic strip or band, and means for securing such strip at different portions of its length in either its normal or in its stretched condition.

6. A garment of the character described having within itsback portion at the waist line a plurality of fastening members, an elastic band having a plurality of fastening members, one of the sets of fastening members having spacings diflerent from those of the other set.

7. A garment of the character described having within its back portion at the waist line a plurality of fastening members, an elastic band having a plurality of fastening members, one of the sets of fastening members having spacings different from those of the other set, and a plurality of vertical loop-forming tapes secured at their upper and lower ends to and at the inner side of the back portion of the garment.

Signed by me at Springfield, Mass, in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM C. P. BALDWIN,

Witnesses:

IN. S. BnLLows, G. R. Dmscorn, 

